This paper discusses the structure that incorporates information from discourse to derive distributivity. Following a proposal by López (2009) to account for the interpretation shown in the canonical focus structure using the notion “contrast”, I suggest that the feature “contrast” assigned to the edge of CP results in distributivity to the extent that distributivity occurs if and only if predi...

When using existential constructions to introduce plural NPs (e.g., there are dishes in the sink), speakers have the option of using a plural or singular form of the verb. In other words, speakers can use agreeing (plural) or non-agreeing (singular) forms of the verb when the NP is plural. Previous research reveals that non-agreement under existential there is the norm, even in standard varieti...

This paper presents an integration of centering theory ([GJW95]) into incremental dynamic logic. The formalism is based on an idea found in [vE00a], where contexts are permutable in order to model salience. Building on this idea, centering theory is restated as a formalism on contexts. Subsequently the system is used to consider some problems centering theory has once plurality is taken into ac...

One of the phenomena that has been studied extensively in cognitive science is learning the English past tense. Many models have been made of the characteristic U-shape in performance on irregular verbs during development. An important test case for such models is whether they can be extended to other examples of inflection. A case that is often quoted as particularly tough is the German plural...

There are two fundamentally different views of the semantics of definite plural NPs. I will call them ‘Reference to a Plurality’ and ‘Plural Reference’. Reference to a Plurality is the view that definite plurals stand for a particular sort of entity, a plurality, more precisely a plurality ‘as one’. There are different formal conceptions of pluralities as ‘one’: as sums within extensional mereo...

Alderete (2001) cites voicing alternations in Luo plural and possession marking as compelling evidence for transderivational antifaithfulness (TAF) constraints. In this paper, I show that a TAF analysis of Luo plural formation meets empirical problems, and argue for an alternative approach based on the interaction of faithfulness and markedness constraints in a containmentbased version of Optim...

Modern functional logic programming (FLP) languages use non-terminating and nonconfluent constructor systems (CSs) as programs in order to define non-strict and nondeterministic functions. Two semantic alternatives have been usually considered for parameter passing with this kind of functions: call-time choice and run-time choice. While the former is the standard choice of modern FLP languages,...

1 Introduction The familiar paradigm of Latin first declension nouns in (1) illustrates case syncretism: although at least five cases are recognised, neither the singular nor the plural has five distinct forms: in the singular the genitive and dative are identical, and in the plural the dative and ablative are identical.